It is not often that I agree with what comes out of the mouth of Barry Ferguson, but you have to give him credit for his comments of yesterday; he is calling it right, and he’s telling it true.
Whilst not wanting to give up on the championship he has analysed, correctly, what it will take for the club he loves to win it. Not some inspired comeback from The Mooch and his team, but a full-scale collapse of Celtic’s season.
We’re only in December. Nobody sane would be calling a title race at this time of year. Hugh Keevins said that in his column at the weekend, and frankly I didn’t have the heart to remind him that he himself called it last season way before December and famously called it back in November in 2011. Most in the media have accepted, gratefully, The Mooch’s insistence that he and his club can still claw it back, and they are, of course, correct.
But the way they frame it, all that needs to happen here is for them to improve and go on a winning run and all the pieces will fall into place. It’s not like that though, and Barry Ferguson has at least acknowledged that an Ibrox title tilt this season will have to happen in two parts. Part one is their form getting better. Part two is ours getting worse.
The reason part two is so difficult for some of the hacks to wrap their brains around is, of course, because part two is out of their hands. This title race, in a very real way, is out of their hands. If we go to Ibrox with the same points lead as right now and even draw, then they need the proverbial “snookers” in order to catch us.
It’s not won, but it’s ours to lose.
When we beat them at Ibrox, even a draw would be good enough, their new high hopes will be suddenly shattered all over again. The remainder of the season will be all about us getting the job done as efficiently as possible and as soon as we can. We never stop!
Ferguson talks about the Rangers having to do ‘ducking and diving ‘ with player sales and financial transactions in the Winter window ! Highly apt from him as he has serious form as far as past personal monetary ‘activities ‘ go . He would be the first to know ….. You old bankrupt …you….